Winter Storm Alert

ALERT: Major Winter Storm in the Highly Populated Mid-Atlantic and Northeast U.S. to Bring Heavy Snow, Ice, and Strong Winds. Weekend-Long Event Could Bring Considerable Insured Cat and Property Losses.

Scenario: Beginning Thursday, moderate snowfall is expected across the Ohio Valley with areas further south seeing a wintry mix. The system moves into the Richmond and Washington, D.C. areas early Friday bringing the start of the snow accumulations. As Friday progresses, the system will strengthen and move north dropping significant amounts of snow on major markets including D.C., Baltimore, and Richmond. At the same time, anticipate an area of significant icing further south which could include Charlotte and Raleigh-Durham.

The slow-moving system is expected to bring continuous, heavy snowfall to the entire Mid-Atlantic region through the day Saturday to include Philadelphia, New York City, and Hartford before tapering off south to north on Sunday. Before it’s all over, considerable snowfall amounts should extend into southern New England as well. In addition to the heavy snow, the storm system will bring high winds along the Northeast corridor producing whiteout conditions for many, making travel nearly impossible. It certainly has the potential to go down in the record books as one of the biggest Nor’easters recorded.

Potential Impact to Insurance Industry: Impacts are likely to be significant across this highly populated region given the combination of heavy snow, heavy ice, and high winds which will include coastal flooding, storm surge, downed trees, and widespread power outages. Given the heavy snow and winds topping 60mph for coastal areas, the potential for considerable insured losses seems likely with a storm of this magnitude. This would come in the form of structural damage to homes and businesses along with flooding claims given the potential 8-15 foot waves and accompanying surge for coastal locations, most significant in Delaware, New Jersey, and New York.

If you have questions, please reach out to your Client Services Manager or contact our Client Services Hotline at +1-610-854-2222 to speak with a member of the Planalytics team.